I 



F 

I CZJ NARRATIVES OF EARLY WISCONSIN TRAVELLERS, 



PRIOR TO 1800 



BY HENRY EDUARD LEGLER 

Secretary of Wisconsin Free Library Commission 



From Proceedings of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1905] 



MADISON 
State Historical Society of Wisconsin 



906 




Rnnk tj'j 



NARRATIVES OF EARLY WISCONSIN TRAVELLERS, 
PRIOR TO 1800 



BY HENRY EDUARD LEGLER 
Secretary of Wisconsin Free Library Commission 



[From Proceedings of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1905] 



MADISON 
State Historical Socibty of Wisconsin 

1906 



AY 31 
D. ofD, 



Narratives of Early Wisconsin 
Travellers, Prior to 1800 



By Henry Eduard Legler 

In order that the eixploratory period of Wisconsin history, 
stretching over more than a century and a half, may properly 
be understood, a mental reconstruction of the^ map of the 
Mississippi valley and the basin of the Great Lakes is essential. 
Comparisons between a modern physiographic map of this 
region and the work of the seventeenth and eighteenth century's 
cartographers explain many misconceptions of that time that 
largely guided the movements of the explorers and affected 
subsequent events. In the accounts of ecdesiasticsi and laymen 
alike, seemingly absurd or distorted statement® may thus fre- 
quently be reconciled with good faith in the telling, rather than 
considered as evidences of travellers' license — ^although there 
wfere not wanting writers whose imagination was over-vivid. The 
facts that pertain to the printing of these early narratives, 
with the impelling motives for publication, constitute an in- 
teresting and a not unimportant part of our early history. 
Until the nineteenth century, these narratives and their accom- 
panying and contemporary maps are the primlary sources of 
Wisconsin history. They may roughly be classified into four 
divisions : 

1. Eeports of Jesuit priests sent back from the wilderness 
missions for the inioiTnation of their superiorsi and the eair 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

couragenrDeait of wealthy patrons across seias. Such were the 
Jesuit Relations, printed annually from 1632 to 1672. 

2. Accounts of Eecollect fathers who were attached to expe- 
ditions from which Jesuits were ecscluded; they also wrote 
from actual observation. Such were the narratives of Louis 
Hennepin and Christian le Clercq. 

3. Memoirs of voyageurs who were acting wholly or in part 
as governmental representatives, seeking royal favor or finan- 
cial aid by means of their reports. To this class belong the 
numerous recitals that resulted from the La Salle journeys. 

4. l^arratives of travellers acting independently, whose rov- 
ings were prompted mainly by a spirit of adventure, with an 
admixture of commercial motive. The travels of Alexander 
Henry and Jonathan Carver, and in a measure those of Pierre 
Eadisson, belong in this category. 

The accounts referred to in the first three divisions appeared 
originally in French; those comprised in the fourth division, 
in English. Many of them were translated into numerous 
other languages of continental Europe, had a wide circulation, 
and gave a considerable impetus to adventurous quest for fame 
and fortune in the new land of romance and mystery. 

[Signature of Father Marquette] 

After Jacques Cartier's memorable voyage from St Malo, 
whereby France added a vast empire to its possessions, a full 
century elapsed before a white man's foot pressed the soil of 
Wisconsin. ISTicolet doubtless reached the neighborhood of thfl 
Fox-Wisconsin port;ag^; but nearly forty years more were re- 
quired to traverse the region that lay between that portage and 
the river Colbert (or Conception) — ^the Mississippi River of 
our present-day nomenclature. It was not definitely knowm 
until nearly ten years later whether or not that great stream 
emiptied into the Gfulf of Mexico or the Vermilion Sea — ^if the 
latter, meaning a short route to China« Such geographical un- 

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Narratives of Early Travellers 

certainties fascinated soldiers of fortune; and the tales of 
wandering tribesmen, who sought a mart for their furs at the 
mouth of the Ottawa, stimulated the activity of merchants as 
well as of government agents. 

As for the Jesuits, they were concerned only with the souls 
of red men. With an utter disregard of self that brought mar- 
tyrdom to many, priests of that order penetrated the remotest 
forest recesses in an endeavor to convert the heathen to their 
faith. Thus, beginning with the year 1634, and at intemrals 
that gradually became briefer, a picturesque procession of for- 
est rangers, black-gowned Jesuit priests, girdled Franciscan 
friars, and uniformed French officers crossed and recrossed the 
domain between the great lakes and the great river, following 
the routes suggested by the most convenient water-courses, and 
portaging from one stream to another when necessary. Here 
and there, in the course of the years, a little mission chapel 
was erected as shelter for a patient priest, or a rude stockade 
became the rallying point for the roving coureurs des bois. 

When in 1684 Henry de Tonty and his little company of 
Frenchmen scaled Starved Rock and built thereon a rude en- 
closure that they called Fort Saint Louis, they were the sole 
representatives of royal authority in that vast stretch of coun- 
ti-y extending from the Alleghany Mountains on the east to the 
liocky Mountains on the west, from the great Superior Sea on 
the north to the Gulf of Mexico on the south. Six months be- 
fore, Ebbert Cavelier de la Salle, upon reaching the mouth of 
the Mississippi had with impressive formality performed the 
ceremony whereby the king of France became possessed of 
the wide region that became known as Louisiana. Its bound- 
aries were lat^r claimed tO' be the Eocky Mountains and the 
Appalachian system on the west aiLa east respectively, the 
frozen sources of the Mississippi on the north, and from Span- 
ish Florida to Mexico on the south. *'This stretch ran from 
com to oranges; from sycamore to palmetto. The flood that 
coursed this enormous basin was one of the world's largest, 
draining an area of more than twelve hundred and fifty thou- 

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Wisconsin Historical Society 

sand square miles, sending twenty million of millions of cubic 
feet of water annually to the sea/"*^ 

Although usually written with probability of publication in 
view, and designed to enlist interest and aid, the a-c<?ouiits con- 
stmcted by these intrepid explorers frequently lack polish in 
diction, but seldom fail in graphic presentation of incident, 
keen analysis of Indian character, and minute description of 
their customs. The Jesuit Relations are especially important, 
as containing a remarkable fund of information, not only with 
reference to these subjects, but as well about the fauna and 
flora of the country, and the languages, customs, laws, and other 
peculiarities of the aborigines. Frequently their reports were 
written in their little cabins of bark, under the most distress- 
ing diffixiulties, and transimitted to the hands of their superiors 
when the flotilla of Indian canoes made its annual voyage to 
the St. Lawrence. The manuscripts were subjected to careful 
revision before transmission to Paris, where the king's printer, 
Sebastien Ci'amoisy, annually (1632-72) issued a duodecimo 
Relation with his imprint. Unfortunately, the pencil of the 
ecclesiastical censor expunged from the manuscripts of the mis- 
sionaries, before publication, all references to persons hostile to 
the order. For instance, in none of the series can any refer- 
ence be found to La, Salle. On tlie other hand, all knowledge 
of the first exploration in the Wisconsin region would be un- 
known today but for the interesting account of Jean Nioolet's 
remarkable canoe voyage up the Ottawa, down the French, 
along Georgian Bay, and after skirting the shores of Green 
Bay, up the Fox Kiver to where that stream nearest approaches 
the Wisconsin Kiver. 

The account of Nicolet's expedition appeared in the Relation 
of 1642-43,^ known as Vimont's Relaiton, from the name of 
the superior who compiled the manuscript for the printer, ob- 



iWinsor, Cartier to Frontenac, p. 294. 

2Thwaites, Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents (Cleveland, 1896- 
1901, 73 vols.), xxiil. 

[160] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

taining his data from the letters of individual missionaries in 
the field. A translation into English Avas not made until vol- 
ume xxiii of the Cleveland edition of the Jesuit Relations, ed- 
ited by Dr. Ri. G. Thwaites, appeared in 1898. In his preface 
tx) this volume, Dr. Thwaites notes that, owing to the fact that 
the Iroquois had captured the year's report of the Huron mis- 
sions, "the Eelation of 1642-43 is T\rritten wholly by the su- 
perior, Vimont; it is without date, but doubtless was written 
in the early autumn of 1643, in time for the vessel returning 
to France.'' Nearly a half century ago C^tus Woodman of 
Mineral Point spent some time at the Harvard College library 
translating those portions of the Relations bearing upon Wis- 
consin history, the result being published in volume iii of 
Smith's histor}^ of the state. The Vimont Relation, the most 
important in its bearing upon Wisconsin history, appears to 
have been unaccessible to Woodman at the time, as the Nioolet 
journey is not included in his translation. 

The story of N^icolet's coming to Wisconsin, in the belief 
that here he would find China, has frequently found its way 
into print with some embellishment. The wording of the 
Relation is as follows — adopting the translation in the 
Thwaites edition: 

After this treaty of peace [with the Iroquois] he went to live eight 
or nine years with the Algonquin Nipissiriniens, where he passed for 
one of that nation, taking part in the very frequent councils of those 
tribes, having his own separate cabin and household, and fishing and 
trading for himself. He was finally recalled, and appointed Agent and 
Interpreter. While in the exercise of this office, he was delegated to 
make a journey to the natives called People of the sea, and arrange 
peace between them and the Hurons, from whom they are distant about 
three hundred leagues Westward. He embarked in the Huron country, 
with seven savages; and they passed by many small nations, both going 
and returning. When they arrived at their destination, they fastened 
two sticks in the earth, and hung gifts thereon, so as to relieve these 
tribes from the notion of mistaking them for enemies to be massacred. 
When he was two days' journey from that nation, he sent one of these 
savages to bear tidings of th'e peace, which word was especially well 
received when they heard that it was a European who carried the 

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Wisconsin Historical Society 

message; they despatched several young men to meet the Manitou- 
irinion — that is to say, "the wonderful man." They meet him; they 
escort him and carry all his baggage. He wore a grand robe of China 
damask, all strewn with flowers and birds of many colors. No sooner 
did they perceive him than the women and children fled, at the sight 
of a man who carried thunder in both hands — for thus they called the 
two pistols that he held. The news of his coming quickly spread to the 
places round about, and there assembled four or five thousand mea 
Each of the chief men made a feast for him, and at one of these batt 
quets they served at least six-score Beavers. The peace was concluded; 
he returned to the Hurons, and some time later to the three Rivers, 
where he continued his employment as Agent and Interpreter, to the 
great satisfaction of both the French and the Savages, by whom he was 
equally and singularly loved. 

Tlie next French travellers to reach the region between Lake 
Michigan and the upper Mississippi were Eladisson and his 
brother-in-law Groseilliers. The interesting account of their 
sojourn in northern Wisconsin (1659-60) was Avritten by 
Eadisson to interest King Charles II and Prince. Eupert in 
behalf of their fur-bartering schemes, for Eadisson and his 
brother-in-law were renegades who changed flags between 
Prance and England as often as cupidity might dictate. iS^otes 
which Eadisson had made during his long wanderings in the 
new world were hammered into eccentric English with an or- 
thography that is curiously at variance with any known Eng- 
lish standard. For two hundred years this important journal 
remained in manuscript. In 1885 it finally found its way 
into print as a publication of the Prince Society, Boston. In 
the preface the editor of this publication, Mr. Gideon Scull, 
tells the interesting story of the vicissitudes that befell Ead- 
isson's manuscript till part of it found its way into the British 
Museum and the rest into the Bodleian library: 

The narrative of travels between the years 1652 and 1664 was for 
some time the property of Samuel Pepys, the well-known diarist and 
secretary of the admiralty to Charles II and James II. He probably 
received it from Sir George Carteret, the vice-chamberlain of the King 
and treasurer of the navy, for whom it was no doubt carefully copied 
out from his rough notes by the author, so that it might, through him, 

[162] 





















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Facsimile of page of Pierre Radisson's Narrative, from the original MS in 
Bodleian Library, Oxford, England. 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

be brought under the notice of Charles II. Some years after the death 
of Pepys, in 1703, his collection of manuscripts was dispersed and fell 
into the hands of various London tradesmen, who bought parcels of 
it to use in their shops as waste-paper. The most valuable portions 
were carefully reclaimed by the celebrated collector, Richard Rawlin- 
son, who in writing to his friend, T. Rawlins, from London house, 
January 25th, 1749-50, says: "I have purchased the best part of the 
fine collection of Mr. Pepys, secretary to the admiralty during the 
reigns of Chas. 2d and James 2d. Some are as old as King Henry 
VIII. They were collected with a design for a Lord High Admiral such 
as he should approve; but those times are not yet come, and so little 
care was taken of them that they were redeemed from thus et odoret 
venientidus." 

The mannsoript containing Eadisson's narrative for the 
years 1682 and 1683 "was purchased of Eodd, 8th July, 
1839," by the British Museum. The narrative in French, for 
the year 1684, wasi, as his bookplate informs us, bought by Sir 
Hans Sloane from the collection of "N"ioolai Joseph Foucault, 
Comitis Consistoriani.'' 

In these voyages Radisson and his brother-in-law visited the 
Ottawas, "ye nation of ye stairing haires," as the French 
called them; also the famous Fire Nlation of Wisconsin, whose 
chiefs nearly a quarter of a century before had hospitably en- 
tertained Nicolet. The adventurers passed a, winter with the 
Potawatomi, and heard botli of the Sioux nation and a wan- 
dering tribe called the Ohristino, dwelling in summer on the 
shores of Hudson Bay, and in winter on the Wisconsin side of 
Lake Superior. It has been claimed that while with the Mas- 
oouten, or Fire l^ation, the t\w Frenchmen made a canoe voy- 
age to the Mississippi River. "We ^veare 4 moneths in our 
voyage without doeing anything but goe from river tO' river,'' 
Bladisson wrote; "We went into ye greate river that divides 
itself in 2." Evidence is lacking to prove the surmise that 
Radisson therein meant that he reached the Mississippi. 

It was during their second voyage tkat Rla;disson and Gro^ 
seilliers had their liveliest experience. En route they enjoyed 
themselves hugely, shooting game — "it was to us like a terres- 
trial paradise." On the shore of Chequamegon Biay they con- 

[164] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

structed the first habitation ever built by white men in Wis- 
consin — a little fort of stakes surrounded by a long oord on 
which little bells were tied. They reasoned that if hostile 
^•wildmen/' as Eadisson terms the Indians, came unexpectedly 
upon them, the ringing of these bells by sudden contact would 
apprise the occupants of the fortified hut in season to guard 
against surprise: 

We went about to make a fort of stakes, wch was in this manner. 
Suppose that the watter side had ben in one end, att the same end there 
should be murtherers, and att need we made a bastion in a triangle 
to defend us from an assault. The doore was neare the watter side, our 
fire was in the midle, and our bed on the right hand covered. There 
were boughs of trees all about our fort layed acrosse, one uppon an 
other. Besides these boughs, we had a long cord tyed with some small 
bells, wch weare senteryes. Finally, we made an end of that fort In 2 
dayes* time. 

The 'Svildmen" proved to be friendly. In fact they seemed 
to fear the strangers, rather than to wish to do them harm. 
But the Frenchmen were on their guard, and took good care 
to prevent treachery and to astonish the natives' with a show of 
power. In his quaint style, Radisson remarks in his journal: 

We suffered none to| goe in but one person [at a timte], and [they] 
liked it so much the better & often durst not goe in, so much they 
stood in feare of our arms, that were in good order, wch weare 5 guns, 
two musquetons, 3 fowling peeces, 3 paire of great pistoletts and 2 
paire of pockett ons, and every one his sword and dagger. ♦ * • 
Wte waere Cesars, being nobody to contradict us. 

Then he adds, in narrating a visit from fifty young warriors, 
and their wonder at sight of the fort: "They were astonied, 
calling us every foot deviUs to have made such a machine." 

When the Hurons went on their great ^vinter hunt, Radisson 
and Groseilliers went with thein. They killed much large 
gaime, for in those days "Wisconsin's forests were the haunt of 
thei moose, the elk, the antelope, the woodland caribou, and 
other animals long extinct here, while on the prairies roamed 
greait herds of buffalo. Among other quadrupeds killed were 
beavers, bears, and wolverines. The moose seems to have been 

[ 166 ] 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

the chief trophy of the chase — Radisson calls this animal the 
oriniack : 

We beated downe the woods dayly for to discover novelties. We 
killed severall other beasts, as Oriniacks, staggs, wild cows, Carri- 
boucks, fallow does and bucks, Catts of mountains, child of the Devill; 
in a word, we lead a good life. The snow increases daily. There we 
make racketts, not to play at ball, but to exercise ourselves in a game 
harder and more necessary. They are broad, made like racketts, that 
they may go in the snow and not sinke when they runne after the eland 
or other beasts. 

Following this prodigality of hunting pro^v^ess, there came a 
great famine, for the snow, which fell in immense quantities, 
was so light that it would not bear the burden of the snow- 
shoes, and hunting for food was outi of the question. With 
painful minuteness the journal of Raidisson depicts their mis- 
efiy, which ^^grows wors and wors dayly/' 

Although Radisson's journal was written some years after 
this event, its memories must have remained fresh, judging 
from the graphic fidelity of his narrative. Fbr instance: 

O, cursed covetousnesse, what art thou going to doe? Every one 
eryes out for hunger; Ffrench, you called yourselves Gods of the earth, 
that you should be feared, for your interest; notwithstanding you shall 
tast of the bitternesse. Where is the plentynesse that yee had in all 
places and in countreys. Here comes a new family of these poore 
people dayly to us, halfe dead, for they have but the skins and boans. 
The first 2 weeke we did eate our doggs. As we went backe upon our 
stepps for to gett anything to fill our bellyes, we were glad to gett the 
bones and carcasses of the beasts that we killed. And happy was he 
that could gett what the other did throw away after it had been boiled 
3 or foure times to get the substance out of it 

Finally they were reduced to eating boiled skins, ground 
bones, and the bark of trees. As Eladisson expressed it, '^finally 
"We became the very Image of Death. Here are above 600 
dead. It's time to oome out of such miseryee." At last the 
snow! hardened, and the womout hunters were enabled with 
greaife eflPort to secure a few ajiimala with which to cheeir their 
famished stomachs. 

[166] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

Much of the success that attended tlie barter of these two 
Frenchmen with the Indians was due to the possession of mei^ 
chandise that pleased the fancy of the latter. Such articles as 
glasses, little bells, combs, vermilion, necklaces, and bracelets 
were profitably exchanged, although the barter w^as ostensibly 
made in the nature of an exchange of gifts. Says E,adisson: 
''We gave them several gifts and received many. They be- 
stow^ed upon us above 300 robs of castors'' (beavers). 

How far south of the Wisconsin River Eadisson and his 
brother-in-law went in their journeys is a matter of conjecture. 
Benjamin Suite, who has made a close study of Radisson's 
journal, believes tliat in 1658-59 they Avintered in the neigh- 
borhood of Milwaukee-^ if not of Chicago. 

For many years, beginning in 1665, Nicolas Perrot was the 
chief of forest rangers in Wisconsin. A monstrance wrought 
in silver and in 1686 preisented by him to the Jesuit mission 
at Green Bay, is now in the possession of the Wisconsin His- 
torical Society.^ Peorrot wrote an account of his experiences, 
but this was not published until 1864, when Father Tailhan 
prepared it for publication, with numerous notes of his o^vn. 
An English translation has never appeared, although extracts 
in English have been included in Rev. Chrysoetom Verwyst's 
Missionary Labors of Fathers MarqueUe, Menard and Allouez, 
and in the Wisconsin Historical Collections. 

Among the most interesting material in Perrot's narrative 
is that descriptive of Indian customs. Particularly vivid is 
his account of an Indian feast and war dance, as practiced in 
Wisconsin t^vo centuries and a half ago. After describing the 
contents of the war bag, or "pindikos&an," consisting of the 
skins of owls, snakes, white birds, parrots, magpies, and other 
animals, he proceeds: 

Before the feast they always fast, without eating or drinking until 
they have had a dream. During this fast they blacken their face, 



1 Illustrated in Wis. Hist. Colls., xvi, p. 142. 

[lOT] 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

shoulders and breast with cjoal; they smoke, however. Some are said 
to have fasted twelve consecutive days — which seems incredible — and 
others less. 

After elaborate ceremonials and the eating of dog's flesh, an 
Indian delicacy, the master of ceremonies, who is armed with 
bow and quiver of arrows as well as a javelin, 

assumes a most furious look, entones his war song, and at each syl- 
lable that he pronounces makes most horrible contortions of head and 
body — the most terrible that can be seen. After him all the guests, 
one after another, endeavor to outdo one another in assuming most 
furious appearances. While singing, some fill their plates with hot 
ashes and burning coals, which they throw upon the spectators, who 
vociferate in chorus with a very strong but slow voice, "Ouiy!" Others 
seize fire-brands and throw them up into the air; others, again, act as 
if they were going to tomahawk the spectators. These last are obliged 
to repair the affront offered to him whom they feigned to strike, by 
making him a present of vermillion, knife or some other object of like 
value. Only such warriors as have slain or captured an enemy are 
allowed to act in this manner. These feints signify that it was thus 
the enemy was slain. i 

After some more shouting and grimacing, the best of the 
feast is given to the guests. "Above all," adds P'errot, "every- 
one must come provided with his own plate; othei'wise he 
would not get his share. Hence they never fail in this, the 
Indian being naturally too gluttonous to forget on an occasion 
like this to fill well his belly." 

[Signature of Father Allouez] 

For the pathetic account of Father Menard's death, while 
seeking his lost sheep, the migratory Huron Indians, about the 
headquarters of the Black River, the Jesuit Relations must 
again be referred to. Therein, also, are recited the sore trials 
that befell Father Claude Allouez, and the story is told how 
Father Louis Andre dealt with the untutored savages. With 



iVerwyst's translation. 

[ 168 ] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

St flute, Andre taught the Indian children to sing the canticles 
of the Catliolic cliurch, and then marched them through the 
villages, preaching to their elders through the medium of tlieir 
youtlif ul voices. The Relation goes on to say : 

Certain spiritual songs which he sung to the children with French 
airs, pleased these savages extreimely; in such a manner, that in the 
streets and in the cabins our mysteries were made public and were re- 
ceived there with applause, and insensibly stamped themselves on the 
mind by means of these canticles. This success gave courage to the 
father, and caused him to resolve on attacking the men through the 
children, and to combat with idolatry by these innocent souls. In effect 
he composed canticles against the superstitions of which we have 
spoken, and against the vices most opposed to Christianity, and having 
taught them to the children by the sound of a soft flute, he went every- 
where with his little savage musicians, declaring war against the jug- 
glers, the dreamers, and those who had many wives; and because the 
savages passionately loved their children and suffered everything from 
them, they allowed the reproaches, although biting, which were made 
to them by these songs, inasmuch as they proceeded from the mouths 
of their children. It happened sometimes, that as the father was 
obliged in the heat of dispute to refute the errors of these superstitious 
people, and to convince the old men of the falsity and silliness of their 
idolatry, it happened, I say, that this troop of children tired of hearing 
such disputes, threw themselves among them and sounding their canti- 
cles, obliged their parents to be silent. This gave the father much joy, 
who saw that God made use of these innocent mouths to confound the 
impiety of their own parents. 




[Signature of Louis Jolliet] 

The 17th day of June, 1673, is a memorable date in the hisr 
tory of the Mississippi valley. On that day the two canoes of 
Lmiis Jolliet and Father Jacques Miarquette passed from the 
waters of the Wisconsin Kiver tO' the Mississippi. Upon their 
return fro-m the lower reaches of the great Western waterway, 
Marquette wintered at Green Bay, where he wrote his famous 
12 [1G9] 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

account of the voyage. Joliiet hurried on to Quebec to sub- 
mit his official report. His canoe capsized in Lachine rapids, 
when near his destination, his journal and notes being swept 
away and irrevocably lost. Marquette thus became the his- 
torian of the expedition. His manuscript did not become a 
part of the famous printed Relations, for the government li- 
cense for the publication of them was withdrawn in 1672, and 
it was not till nine years later that Thevenot, a Paris pub- 
lisher, brought it out, together mth the missionary's map, in a 
jsmall duodecimo volume comprising forty-one pages. 

[Signature of Henry de Tonty] 

La Salle's expedition to Green Bay — which his vessel the 
"Griffon" reached in 1679 — and beyond in canoes by way of 
the Wisconsin shore of Lake Michigan to the Illinois country, 
resulted in the publication of numerous journals and memioirs. 
Those referring to the journey in the Wisconsin territory were 
written by his loyal lieutenant Henr)^ de Tonty, and by Fatlier 
Louis Hennepin. There are briefer references in the account 
of Father Christian Le Clercq. Tonty's memoir first appeared 
in 1697, being Elnglished the following year. A spurious ac- 
count attributed to him, but which he repudiated, also appeared 
in 1697. Despite the inordinate vanity exhibited by its author, 
Hennepin's book is most readable. It includes an interest- 
ing account of a buffalo hunt by Indians, in western Wiscon- 
sin. The volume had an extraordinary sale in Europe, and 
its many editions, in several languages, have engaged the in- 
dustry^ of several bibliographers. 

In 1689 Baron Lahontan reached Green Bay and proceeded 
as far as the Mississippi. His adventures, as printed, include 

[170] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

a vivid account of mythical nations inhabiting the regions of 
a mythical river reaching from the Mississippi westward to the 
mysterious regions which on earlier maps appear as lands un- 
kno^^^l to tlie geographer. The "Long River'' of Lahontan's 
map was for many years pei*petuated on subsequent charts, be- 
fore its bogus character was discovered. The mendacious 
baron wrote his tale while a fugitive in England. In his 
preface he avers that had tlie king of France restored him to 
his offices, the manuscript would have been committed tO' the 
flames. 

Fathers St. Oosme and Guignas were birds of passage, who 
refer but briefly to their journeys through Wisconsin in the 
closing years of the seventeenth century. 

In 1721 Father Charlevoix came to Wisconsin, the result of 
his observations being embodied in his moniunental histor)^ of 
New France, Shea's English translation of which has appeared 
in six volumes. 

Daniel Greysolon du I'llut (Duluth), a cousin of La Salle's 
lieutenant, Touty, was, so far as recorded, the first white man 
to journey in a canoe from Lake Superior to the Mississip'pi 
Eiver, his route being by way of the St. Oroix River. His 
memoir refers but briefly tO' his explorations in Wisconsin. 

Like the accounts written by Hennepin, the printed recital 
of Captain Jonathan Carv^er's travels in Wisconsin, in 1766, 
had a large sale in Europe, especially in England. At least 
twenty-three editions appeared in rapid succession from presses 
in London, Dublin, Edinburgh, and numerous towns in the 
English colonies. It was the most popular book of the day. 
Latter-day research has proved that much of his material was 
stolen from earlier books of travel written by Frenchmen.^ 
However, Carver's book served for the first time to advertise 
the Western country to Einglish-speaking people. 



iJohn Goadby Gregory, in Parkman Club Publications, No. 5 (Mil- 
waukee, 1896). See also article on Carver by Edward G. Bourne, in 
American Historical Review for January, 1906. 

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Wisconsin Historical Society- 
Like other travellers V/ iio followed his route, Captain Garveir 
noted the immense tracts of wild rice meadows along the shores 
of Fox River, and the myriad game birds; that fed npon this 
grain. ^'This river is the greatest resort, of wild fowl of every 
kind that 1 met with in the whole course of my travels," he 
wrote; ''frequently the sim wonld be obscured by them for 
some minutes together. Deer and bear arei very numerous in 
these parts.'' 

From the time he left Green Bay until his canoe was beached 
at Prairie du Chien, Carver had seen no trace of white men. 
Well-built Indian towns greeted his view as he floated down the 
Wisconsin ; but at Prairie du Chien he found the most notable 
town. He wrote: 

It is a large town and contains about 300 families. The houses are 
well built after the Indian manner and pleasantly situated on a very 
rich soil, from which they raised every necessary of life in great abun- 
dance. I saw many horses here of a good size and shape. This town 
is the great mart where all the adjacent tribes, and even those who 
inhabit the most remote branches of the Mississippi, annually assemble 
about the latter end of May, bringing with them the furs to dispose of 
to the traders. But it is not always that they conclude their sale here; 
this is determined by a general council of the chiefs, who consult 
whether it would be more conducive to their interest to sell their goods 
at this place or carry them on to Louisiana or Michilimackinac. 

It has been claimed for Carver that he was the first traveller 
to make kuow^i to the people of Europe the ancient. Indian 
mounds found in the Mississippi valley, and long believed to 
have been the w'ork of an extinct people. This is his descrip- 
tion of what he conceived tO' be an ancient fortification, but 
since assumed to have been an elevation to keep the wigwams 
of the builders above the annual overflow of Lake Pepin : 

One day, Baving landed on the shore of the Mississippi, some miles 
below Lake Pepin, whilst my attendants were preparing their dinner, 
I walked out to take a view of the adjacent country. I had not pro- 
ceeded far before I came to a fine, level, open plain, on which I per- 
ceived at a little distance a partial elevation that had the appearance 
of an entrenchment. On a nearer inspection, I had greater reason to 
suppose that it had really been intended for this many centuries ago* 

[ 172 ] 




From portrait in Carver's Through the Interior Parts of 
Xorth America (London, 1778) 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

Notwithstanding it was now covered with grass, I could plainly discern 
that it had once been a breastwork of about four feet in height, extend- 
ing the best part of a mile, and sufficiently capacious to cover five thou- 
sand men. Its form was somewhat circular, and its flank reached to 
the river. Though much defaced by time, every angle was distinguish- 
able, and appeared as regular, and fashioned with as much military 
skill, as if planned by Vauban himself. The ditch was not visible, but 
I thought, on examining more curiously, that I could perceive there 
certainly had been one. From its situation also I am convinced that 
it must have been designed for this purpose. It fronted the country, 
and the rear was covered by the river; nor was there any rising 
ground for a considerable way, that commanded it. A few straggling 
oaks were alone to be seen near it. In many places small tracts were 
worn across it by the feet of elks and deer, and from the depth of the 
bed of earth by which it was covered I was able to draw certain con- 
clusions of its great antiquity. 

Carver spent the winter among the Sioux, and rather exten- 
feively explored Minnesota. They told him much ahont the 
country of the West — of a great river that emptied into the 
Pacific; of the ^'Shining Mountains," within whose bowels 
could be found precious metals ; and much els© that was new 
and wonderful. It is claimed that in tiieir great council cave, 
they gave to him and to his descendants forever a great tract 
of land, about 14,000 square miles in area, embracing the 
whole of the Xortbwestern part of Wisconsin and part of 
Minnesota. This alleged gift was afterwards made the basis 
for the famous Carver claim. ^ After long investigation and 
consideration the United States congress rejected the claim, 
isevertheiess, many persons w^ere duped into purchasing land 
on the strength of Carver's Indian deed. In some of the 
counties of Wisconsin there are still on file some of the worth- 
less conveyances made out on this shadowy title.' 

Five years before Carver's visit to Wisconsin, a detachment 
of British regulars had taken poi&sesoion of the tiunble-down 

1 See map of Wisconsin in 1847, illustrating Mr. Holmes's "History of 
the First Constitutional Convention in Wisconsin, 1846," post, for 
boundaries of Carver's Claim. 

2 See D. S. Durrie, "Captain Jonathan Carver and 'Carver's Grant,'" 
in Wis. Hist. Colls., vi, pp. 220-270. 

[173] 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

fort at Green Bay. Lieut. James Gorrell, who was in com- 
mand, kept a journal of their experiences. This manuscript 
has had a curious experience. In an introductory note in vol- 
ume i of Wisconsin Historical Collections (1855), the late D'r. 
Lyman C. Draper conveys the information that: 

The late venerable Robert Gilmor, of Baltimore, obtained from Hor- 
atio Ridout, Esq., of Whitehall, near Annapolis, Maryland, quite a col- 
lection of rare and curious manuscripts relative to the old French and 
Indian war, and among them this journal of Lieut. Gorrell. Mr. Ri- 
dout's father was John Ridout, who was secretary to Gov. Horatio 
Sharpe of Maryland during the French and Indian war, and thus be- 
came possessed of these valuable papers. Mr. Gilmor presented them 
to the Maryland Historical Society. 

While Francis Parkman was collecting materials for his 
work on Pontiac's conspiracy, he chanced upon these papers, 
and caused a copy of Gorrell s journal to be transcribed for 
Jie Wisconsin Historical Society. 

Although his travels and adventures are embraced between 
the years 1760 and 1776, Alexander Henry's recital of them 
did not find a printer till 1809. His book is one of the most 
interesting and instructive of the numerous volumes of travel 
relating to this region. He was a fur trader, and spent a con- 
siderable period at Chequamegon. Among the interesting per- 
sonal episodes narrated by him, is that which tells how his life 
was saved in the cabin of Charles Langlade, later Wisconsin's 
first permanent white settler. It was when the English garri- 
son at Mackinac were being massacred by the Indians: 

I heard an Indian war-cry, and a noise of general confusion. Going 
instantly to my window, I saw a crowd of Indians within the fort, 
furiously cutting down and scalping every Englishman they found. 
* * ♦ I had in the room in which I was, a fowling-piece, loaded 
with swan-shot. This I immediately seized, and held it for a few min- 
utes, waiting to hear the drum beat to arms. In this dreadful interval, 
I saw several of my countrymen fall, and more than one struggling 
between the knees of an Indian, who, holding him in this manner, 
scalped him while yet living. 

At length, disappointed in the hope of seeing resistance made to the 
enemy, and sensible, of course, that no effort of my own unassisted 

[174] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

arm, could avail against four hundred Indians, I thought only of seek- 
ing shelter. Amid the slaughter which was raging, I observed many 
of the Canadian inhabitants of the fort calmly looking on, neither op- 
posing the Indians nor suffering injury; and, from this circumstance, 
I conceived a hope of finding security in their houses. 

Between the yard door of my own house, and that of Mr. Langlade, 
my next neighbor, there was only a low fence, over which I easily 
climbed. At my entrance, I found the whole family at the windows, 
gazing at the scene of blood before them. I addressed myself imme- 
diately to M. Langlade, begging that he would put me into some place 
of safety, until the heat of the affair should be over; an act of charity 
by which he might perhaps preserve me from the general massacre; 
but, while I uttered my petition, M. Langlade, who had looked for a 
moment at me, turned again to the window, shrugging his shoulders, 
and intimating that he could do nothing for mfe— ""'Que voudriez-vous 
que j'en ferais?" 

This was a moment for despair; but the next, a Pani woman, a 
slave of M. Langlade's, beckoned to me to follow her. She brought 
me to a door, which she opened, desiring me to enter, and telling me 
that It led to the garret, where I must go and conceal myself. I joy- 
fully obeyed her directions, and she, having followed me up to the gar- 
ret-door, locked it after me, and with great presence of mind took 
away the key. 

This shelter obtained, if shelter I could hope to find it, I was natur- 
ally anxious to know what might still be passing without. Through 
an aperture which afforded me a view of the area of the fort, I be- 
held, in shapes the foulest and most terrible, the ferocious triumphs 
of barbarian conquerors. * * * 

I heard some of the Indians enter the house in which I was. The 
garret was separated from the room below, only by a layer of single 
boards, at once the flooring of one and the ceiling of the other. I 
could therefore hear everything that passed; and, the Indians no 
sooner came in, than they inquired whether or not any Englishman 
were in the house. M. Langlade replied, that "He could not say — he 
did not know of any;" answers in which he did not exceed the truth; 
but the Pani woman had not only hidden me by stealth, but kept my 
secret, and her own. M. Langlade was therefore, as I presume, as far 
from a wish to destroy me, as he was careless about saving me, when 
he added to these answers, that "They might examine for themselves, 
and would soon be satisfied as to the object of their question." Say- 
ing this he brought them to the garret-door. 

The state of my mind will be imagined. Arfived at the door, some 

[175] 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

delay was occasioned by tke absence of the key, and a few moments 
were thus allowed me, in which to look around for a hiding-place. In 
one corner of the garret was a heap of those vessels of birch-bark, used 
in maple-sugar making, as I have recently described. 

The door was unlocked, and opening, and the Indians ascending the 
stairs, before I had completely crept into a small opening which pre- 
sented itself at one end of the heap. An instant after, four Indians 
entered the room, all armed with tomahawks, and all besmeared with 
blood, upon every part of their bodies. 

The die appeared to be cast. I could scarcely breathe; but I thought 
that the beating of my heart occasioned a noise loud enough to betray 
me. The Indians walked in every direction about the garret and one 
of them approached me so closely that at a particular moment, had he 
put forth his hand, he must have touched me. Still, I remained un- 
discovered; a circumstance to which the dark color of my clothes and 
the want of light, in a room which had no window, and in the corner 
in which I was, must have contributed. In a word, after taking sev- 
eral turns in the room, during which they told M. Langlade how many 
they had killed, and how many scalps they had taken, they returned 
down stairs, and I, with sensations not to be expressed, heard the 
door, which was the barrier between me and my fate, locked for the 
second time. 



Bibliographical Data 



In this paper no attempt has been made to indicate sources 
or authorities other than those printed in the English lan- 
guage, although incidental menlion is made of their appear- 
ance in French. The English titles which are appended in 
extenso, represent in all cases the first publication in that lan- 
guage oif the accounts written by early Wisconsin travellers, 
or by others concerning such travels. WHiere satisfactory bib- 
liographies exist, mention is made of these wiithout repetition 
of their contents. In the absence of existing bibliographies, 
there is fuller guidancei tO' specific soiu-ces. The subjoined 
compilation is not, therefore, a bibliography of Wiscons-in 

[176] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

travels, but rather a guide to existinc: bibliographies and other 
sources of information concerning such narratives. 

The great storehouse of original material descriptive of 
early journeys through the Wisconsin region, supplementing 
the books of travel that were printed independently during 
contemporary years, is a compilation in live volumes by Pierre 
Margry. This work was issued during a term of years be- 
ginning in IS 76, the title bearing the following form:^ 

D^couvertes et Etablissements des Frangais dans I'Ouest et dans le 
sud de TAmeriqiie Septentrionale. * * * 1876-86. 

Volume i must be consulted by students of the enterprises in 
which were engaged the missionar)^ priest Claude Allouez and 
the devoted friend of La Salle, Henry de Tonty. The follow- 
ing chapters in this vohune are particularly notable in their 
relation to travels in Wisconsin: 

11. First French voyage to Bale des Puans (Green Bay). 
III. The wanderings of Allouez, 1657-1690. 

XI. Marquette and Jolliet, and their discovery of the Upper Mis- 
sissippi at Prairie du Chien, 1673. 
XXII. Relation of Henry de Tonty. 

In the Jesuit Relations must be sought much material bear- 
ing upon this subject which cannot be found elsewhere. 
Copies of the original Cramoisy series, printed annually in 
Paris from 1G32 to 1672, have survived in such few numbers 
that but one complete set is known — that in the Lenox branch 
of the Xew York Public Library. Keprints of some of these 
were undertaken by E:. B'. O'Oallaghan, John Gilmaiy Shea, 
.and James Lenox during the middle period of the last cen- 
tury; and in 1858 an incomplete and somewhat modified edi- 
tion, crowded into three large volumes, was issued in Quebec. 
These were all in French. It was not until the Thwaites edi- 
tion of the Jesuit Relations and Allien Documents, in 73 vol- 



1 The general title appears only on the covers and as half-title. 
The regular title pages present the special titles of the separate vol- 
umes. The fine paper edition, 1879-88, has a title different in word- 
ing, and there are extra maps and a special introduction. 

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Wisconsin Historical Society 

umes (Cleveland, 1896-1901), that anything like completeness- 
was attained in collecting this valuable material in many 
languages and presenting in well-edited form an Einglish trans- 
lation side by side with the original. 

Other authorities that will well repiay careful consultation 
are the series known as Wisconsin Historical Collections (in- 
dex to volume i-x cumulated in volume x),^ the series known 
as New York Colonial Documents, and the Memoirs of the 
Royal Society of Oanadai E'speoially helpful in the latter 
are the numerous articles by Benjamin Suite, of Ottawa, who 
has likewise contributed many studies on the early French 
voyageurs to the historical and literary press of Canada and 
the United States.^ 

Some of the original narratives herein mientioned have been 
included in whole or in abridgment in numerous collections of 
travels. Memoirs and journals of Wisconsin travels prior to 
1800, appearing in separate form, include the following: 

Pierre Esprit Radisson. In English. 

Nicolas Perrot In French. 

Father Jacques Marquette. In French and English. 

Henry de Tonty. In French and English. 

Father Louis Hennepin. In French, English, Dutch, German, Italian, 

and Spanish. 
Baron Lahontan. In French, English, Dutch, Italian, and German. 
Capt. Jonathan Carver. In English, French, and German. 
Father Pierre Frangois-Xavier Charlevoix. In French, English, and 

German. 
Alexande'r Henry. In English. 



1 Volumes xvi and xvii are entirely devoted to a scholarly presentation 
of contemporary documents hearing on French exploration. Most of 
these were transcribed from the archives in Paris especially for the Wis- 
consin Historical Society; others are reprinted from published sources, 
but with corrections rendered necessary upon comiparing the transcrip- 
tions with the original documents. 

2"Writings of Benjamin Suite" (Milwaukee, 1898), a reprint of a 
bibliography that appeared in American Book-Lore. 

[178] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

Bibliographies dealing witb these travels are neither numer- 
ous, save as to Hennepin, nor satisfactory, with the exception of 
those recently prepared for the Thwaites editions of Hennepin 
and Lahontan by Mr. Victor Hugo Paltsits. The following 
general bibliographies can be consulted with more or less profit, 
but caution must be observed to avoid the perpetuation of the 
many inaccuracies contained therein: 

Bartlett, John Russell. Catalogiie of the John Carter-Brown Library, 

parts ii, iii. (Providence, 1882; 1871.) 
Gagnon, Phileas. Essai de Bihliographie Canadienne. (Quebec, 1895.) 
Harrisse, Henry. Notes sur la Nouvelle France. (Paris, 1872.) 
Pilling, James Constantine. Bibliography of the Algonquian Lan- 
guages. (Washington, 1891.) 
Sabin, Joseph. Dictionary of Books Relating to America. 19 vols. 

(New York, 1868-91.) 
Winsor, Justin. Narrative and Critical History of America, iv. (Bos- 
ton, 1884.) 

The Sabin bibliography ends with the letter S (Smith) and 
does not therefore include Tonty. It was begim in 1868 and 
no volumes have been issued since 1901, so that numerous addi- 
tional titles have been discovered, although in its day it was 
considered a carefully ooanpiledJ lamd excellent bdbliographio 
work. Justin Winsor was somewhat prone tO' accept without 
verification the statements he found in booksellers' and auc- 
tion catalogues. Henry Harrisse's lists^ suffer from brevity. 
Gagnon's lists ai-e limited to titles in his own library. The 
catalogue of the Cartei^Brown library also necessarily ex- 
cludes all titles not represented on its shelves. 

A bibliography of the Jesuit Relations, with careful colla- 
tions, was printed, in 1879 as a contribution to a catalogaie of 
the Lenox Libraiy. However, only a few of the volumes there 
listed are of interest to the student of Wisconsin travels. Vol- 
umes xxiii, 1, liv, and Iv of the Thwaites edition are of most 
value in this oonnectiom 

The early Jesuit missionaries serv^ing in Wisconsin were: 
Eene Menard, 1660; Claude Allouez, 1665; Louis Andre, 

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Wisconsin Historical Society 

1672 ; Jacques Marquette, 1669 ; Father Micliel Guiguas, 
1728; Father BUerrtei FlrangoishXavier C(liaiie\1oax;, .il721. 
Father Jean Frangois Buisson de Ste. Cbsme, 1698, who jour- 
neyed along the Wisconsin edge of Lake Michigan, was a Sem- 
inary priest (Sulpician). 

In lieu of bibliographies of Menard, Allouez, and Andre, the 
index volumes of the Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents 
(Ixxii, Ixxiii) may be consulted. This model index serves, 
with unusual fullness and detail, as a guide to the great his- 
toric wealth of the Relations. 

The St. Cosmie and Guigiias accounis are reprinted in an 
Etnglish version in John Gilmary Shea's Early Voyages up 
and down the Mississippi (Albany: Munsell, 1861), of which 
a second edition was printed by Joseph McDonough in 1902. 
In Shea's Discovery and Exploration of the Mississippi Valley 
(Kedfield, 1853 ; likewise reprinted by Joseph McDonough, 
Albany, 1903) are given the original narratives of the Jesuits 
Marquette and Allouez, and the Kecollects Membre, Hennepin, 
and Anastaise Douay. In the same work Shea includes a note 
on Father Dablon, the Jesuit superior, who in 1668 "followed 
Father ^larquette to Liake Superior * -^^ * and reached 
the Wisconsin with Allouez. He prepared for the press the 
narrative of Marquette and Allouez." 

It will be recalled that in 1672, after forty years of publica- 
tion, the little vellum-covered duodecimos bearing the imprint 
of Sebastien Cramoisy's press discontinued their annual ap- 
pearance. Marquette's journal of hisi Mississippi Kiver voy- 
age, as well as that relating to the lUinois mission, therefore 
failed to be included in the original series of Jesuit Relations.^ 



1 Bibliographical information concerning the Marquette voyages is 
given quite fully in vol. lix of Jesuit Relations and Allied Docu- 
ments, pp. 295-303. There the bibliographic history of Marquette's voy- 
ages is termed a puzzle, and this is apparent to anyone who seeks to 
trace the successive editions in their numerous garbs — independent 
editions, abridgements, sections of composite volumes, etc. The holo- 

[180] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

It did not appear until 1861, when a Paris publisher gave it 
to the reading public as a part of tlie Thevenot collection of 
voyages. The Marquette narrative occupies forty-three pages, 
bearing the following title; 

Voyage et Decouverte de quelqiies pays et nations de TAmerique 
Septentionale par le P. Marquette et Sr. Joliet. A Paris, Chez Estienne 
Michallet rue S. Jacques a I'Image S. Paul. MDCLXXXI. Avec 
privilege du Roy. 

The map accompanying this duodecimo volume is undoubt- 
edly the first ever published of the upper Mississippi River. A 
reprint was m,ade for Obadiah Eich in 1845. In 1854 James 
Lenox caused a reprint to be made of Marquette's journals 
from the manuscript still preserved in the archives of St. 
Mary's College, Montreal. A facsimile of the Marquette later 
journal, derived from the siame source, is given in the Wiscon- 
sin Historical Collections (xvi). A Dutch version of the 
journal of 1673 is included in Van der Aa's collection (Leyden, 
1707). In his Discovery and Exploration of the Mississippi 
Valley, Shea printed the French version of Marquette's jour- 
nal; it occupies pages 231-264. B. F. French, in volume ii of 
his Historical Collections of Louisiana (Philadelphia, 1850), 
gives an English rendering of Marquette's account, occupying 
pages 277-297 with the following sub-title: 

An Account of the Discovery of some New Countries and Nations in 
North America, in 1673, by Pere Marquette and Sieur Joliet. Trans- 
lated from the French. 

The Charlevoix Historie de la Notivelle France was first pub- 
lished in 1744. Shea translated it into English, issuing the 
work in six sumptuous volume® in 1866-70. A Gennan trans- 
lation appeared in 1756. In 1901 Francis Harper, ISTew York, 
reprinted the six volumes. 



graph copy of Marquette's later voyage (1674) is preserved in the 
archives of St. Mary's College at Montreal, and is given in facsimile in 
Wis. Hist. Colls., xvi. The account of his first voyage does not exist 
in his own handwriting, though evidently that in St. Mary's College is 
a copy by a contemporary hand. 

[181] 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

Recollect Missionaries 

The Recollect Fathers were: Anastase Douay^ 1679; Zenobe 
Membre, 1679. The original narratives of Douay and Mem- 
bre, who accomp^anied the La Salle expedition to Green Bay 
and along the Wisconsin shore into Illinois, are reprinted in 
abridged form in Shea's Discovery and Exploration of the Mis- 
sissippi Valley. These narratives form the basis for part of 
Father Christian LeClercq's Etablissement de la Foi dans la 
Nouvelle France, which was first printed in France in 1691. 
An English translation did not appear until 1881, when John 
Gihnary Shea issued the work in two volumes from Elizabeth, 
is'. J.^ L© Glercq's work is largely devoted to the explorations 
of Robert Cavelier de la Salle. The Jesuits ar attacked with 
caustic vigor in the RecoUect's book, and it is claimed that on 
this account it was rigidly suppressed. However, Harrisse 
quotes from iVntoine Arnold's works (Paris, 1780) the follow- 
ing refer ?nce thereto . 

The Jesuits opposed the book and did all they could to suppress it. 
The Recollects, who have friends at court, maintained that the book 
was good and contained nothing but the truth. The bookseller was 
for a timo under arrest for his book, but when it was shown that there 
was nothing in it to be gainsaid, the book passed, and has ever since 
been sold freely. 

It is certain, however, although the book did not suffer abso- 
lute suppression, few copies were ever sold. It is an exceedingly 



1 Shea's translation of the title is as follows: "First Establishment 
of the Faith in New France, containing the Publication of the Gospel, 
the History of the French Colonies, and the Famous Discoveries from 
the Mouth of the St. Lawrence, Louisiana, and the River Colbert, to 
the Gulf of Mexico, accomplished under the direction of the late Mon- 
sieur de la Salle, by Order of the King, with the Victories gained in Can- 
ada, by the Arms of his Majesty over the English and Iroquois, in 1690, 
Dedicated to M. le Comte de Frontenac, Governor and Lieutenant- 
General of New France, by Father Christian le Clercq, Recollect Mis- 
sionary of the Province of St. Anthony of Padua, in Arthois, and 
Warden of the Recollects of Lens." 

[182] 



RELATION 

DE CE QVl S'EST PASSE^ 
E N L A 

NOVVELLE FRANCE 

EN L^ANNEE 1641. & 1643. 

Emioyec ail R. P. lEAN FlLLEAV 
Prouincial de la Compagniede Iesvs, 
.. en la Prouinee de France. 

ParleK.P. B akthelemv Viuoj^T.de 
la mefme C omfdgnte , Super mtr dc 
toutelaMtpon, 




A PARIS, 

SEBASTIEN CRAMOISYo^^.^gj^^,^ 

/r- A n o T c y ^ Jl? 4 l.</^--V \CiC01gnC3u 

^GABRIEL CRAMQi^Y,^ 
M- DC, XLIV. 

4^€C Priuikge dn Rojy.^ 

Facsimile of title-page, original edition of Vimont's Relation 
of 1642-43 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

scarce work. Its authorship has been disputed. Shea calls 
attention to a statement in Father Hennepin's Nouvecm Voy- 
uge — Si volume drawn from the Etablissement — ^that the real 
author of the latter work was Father Valentine le Roux, com- 
missary or superior of the Recollects in Canada. Joutel, in his 
Journal, insinuates that some of the statements were distorted 
versions of materials secured from himself by Father Anas- 
tasius, one of the alleged informants of La Clercq. Indeed, 
much uncertainty enshrouds the authorship of the work. 
Count de Frontenao is said to have inspired parts of it. Chap- 
ters 20-25 are descriptive of the La Salle expedition; the nar- 
ratives of Fathers Membre and Douay, who were with him, are 
the basis for this section of the w^ork. 

Jean Nicolet, 1634 

The account of the travels into Wisconsin by the first white 
man to reach this region, was not written by himself. It ap- 
peared in the Jesuit series of 1643, known as the Vimont Rela- 
tio7i, which bears the following title : 

Relation de ce qui s'est passe en la Novvelle France, en I'annee 
1642 & 1643. Par le R. R Barthelemy Vimont, * * * Superieur de 
toute la Mission. A Paris, Sebastien Cramoisy, MDCXLIV. 

There are copies of this Relation in the original edition in 
the following libraries: Lenox branch of 'New York Public 
(2) ; Harvard University; St. Mary's Cbllege, Montreal; Laval 
University, Quebec; Library of Parliament, Ottawa; Brown 
University, Providence; British Museum. (2). 

A brief bibliography of ^NTicolet appears in Wisconsin His- 
torical Collections, xi, pp. 23-25. It was compiled by Ck>nsul 
Willshire Bntterfield, whose excellent monograph on The Dis- 
covery of the Northwest by John Nicolet describes fully the 
remarkable chance journey of the French explorer. Benjamin 
Suite, whose researches established the date of ISTicolet's coming 
to Wisconsin, has a valuable chapter on Mcolet in his Me- 
langes dfHistoire et de Litterateur (Ottawa., 1876). 

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Wisconsin Historical Society 

Pierre Esprit Radisson, 1659 

Radisson's journey to Wisconsin was written in English,, 
and remained in niauscript for more than two hundred years. 
The Prince Society of Boston included it as one of its series 
of publications, the wxDrk being given the following title : 

Voyages of Peter Esprit Radisson, being an account of his travels 
and experiences among the North American Indians, from 1652 to 
1684. Transcribed from the original manuscripts in the Bodleian li- 
brary and the British Museum. With historical illustrations and an 
introduction, by Gideon D. Scull, London, England. Boston. Pub- 
lished by the Prince Society. 1885. 

In his introduction thereto the editor of the Kadisson nar- 
rative states that that explorer, a native of France, has an ina;- 
perfect knowledge of English, '^and as might be anticipated, 
in orthography, in the use of words, and in the structure; of 
sentences, confonns to no known standard of English compo- 
sition. * * -^ During his long and perilous journeys from 
IG 52-64, he made notes during his wanderings which he after- 
ward copied out on his voyage to England in 1665." 

A bibliography of Radisson by Henry Oolin Campbell is 
appended to Parkman Club Publications, No. 3 (Milwaukee 
1896). 

Nicholas Perrot, 1665 

Of the many coureurs de bois who traversed, the region of 
the Great Lakes, none is so thoroughly identified with Wiscon- 
sin as Nicholas Pei-rot. For nearly two centuries his written 
account slumbered under dust in Paris; but in 1864 Father 
J. Tailhan, S. J., rescued it from its obscurity and edited the 
manuscript for publication, enriching: it with copious anno- 
tations. An English translation has not been published- The 
only printed form in which the memoir is accessible is in the 
Tailhan edition, which bears the following title: 

Memoire sur les Moaurs, Coustumes et RelligioR des Sauvages de 
I'Amerique Septentrionale par Nicolas Perrot. Public pour la premiere 
fois par le R. P. J. Tailhan de la Conipagnie de Jesus. Leipzig and 
Paris. Librairie A. Franck, Albert L. Herold. 1864. 

[ 184 ] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

The Perrot memoir occupies 156 pages, and Tailban^s notes 
1S5 ; there is also an index of 39 pages. The best narrative 
in Engiisli of Perrot's picturesque career was the initial Park- 
man Club Publication, contributed by Gardner P. Stickney, 
who has translated the memoir into English, but tlie transla- 
tion has not yet been printed. 

Louis Hennepin, 1679 

The numerous editions which have attested the popularity 
of Father Hennepin's vividly-written account of his travels 
have engaged the attention of many bibliogTaphers. The first 
attempts to gather information about them are found in Daw- 
son's Historical Magazine for 1857 and 1858, in the form of 
communications from James Lenox, Ei. B. O'Callaghan, John 
Russell Bartlett, and other collectors of American incunabula. 
In 1872, Henry Harrisse included a list of Hennepin editions 
m his Notes sur la Nouvelle France. Other Hennepin biblio- 
graphies include the following : 

Sabin, Joseph. A list of the editions of the works of Louis Hennepin 
and Alonso de Herrera. N. Y., 1876. 

Extracts from Sabin's Dictionary of Books relating to America. 
Shea, John Gilmary. Bibliography of Hennepin, in his translation 
of Hennepin's Louisiane, 1880. 

In this compilation, Shea was assisted by George H, Moore. 

Neill, E. D. The Writings of Louis Hennepin, St. Paul, 1880. 

Bartlett, John Russell. Separate from Catalogue of the Carter-Brown 
Library, second edition, Providence, 1882. 

Winsor, Justin. Father Louis Hennepin and his real or disputed dis- 
coveries, in volume iv of Narrative and Critical History of Amer- 
ica. Boston, 1884. 

Mr. Paltsits terms this "a resume embodying the mistakes of others, 
with the addition of errors of its own." 

Remington, Cyrus Kingsbury. In The Shipyard of the Griffon. Buf- 
falo, 1891. 

A second edition appeared in 1893. The bibliography was also appended 
it Nia-?ra Alb"" Tsq^ ^^ *^^ Commissioners of the State Reservation 

13 [ 185 ] 



New Difcovery 

O F A 

Fafl Country in America. 

Extending above Four Thoufand Miles^ 
BETWEEN 

New France andNtw Mexico^ 

WITH A 

Defcription of the Great Lakes^ Cata- 

raSiSy ^yerSj ^lants^ and Animals 

Alfo, the M.w77ers, Cuftoms^ jand Languages of the (fe- 
veral Native Indians ; and the Advanti^ge of Com- 
merce with thofe different Nations. 

W I T H A 

CONTINUATION, 

Giving an A C C O U N f of the 
Attempts of the Sieur De la SALE'S upon the 
Mines of St, Barhe, &c. The Tai<io§ of 
Quebec by the EngUflj ; With the Advantages 
of a Shorter Cut to Ch'ma and Japan. 

Both Parts Illuftrated with Maps ^ and Figwesy 
and Dedicated to His-Majefty K. Mlllam. 



By L, Hennepjpy. now Refident in Holland. 



To which are added. Several New Difcoveries in "North" 
America, not pubiidi'd in the French'. Edition. 

LONDON, Printed for M. Baztky, J. Tcnfin, 
H.Bmwick, r.Goodmn, SivA S. Man/hip. 1698, 



Facsimile of title-page of Vol. I of Hennepin's Neto Discovery, ed. 
of 1G98. By courtesy of A. C. McClurg & Co., Chicago. 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

Dionne, N. E. In Hennepin: ses Voyages et ses CEuvres. Quebec, 1897. 
"The collations are inaccurare," says Mr. Palsits. 

Gagnon, Phileas. In his Essai de Bibliographie Canadienne. Que- 
bec, 1895. 

Paltsits, Victor Hugo. In the Thwaites edition of Hennepin's A New 

Discovery. Chicago, 1903. 

Also issued as a separate of twenty pages. This is an authoritative 
bibliography, and an excellent example of critical and scientific work. Full 
collations are given. 

The first Eiiglisli edition of Hennepin's A New Discovei^ 
appeared in 1703, witli the following title*: 

A new Discovery of a Vast Country in America extending above 
Four Thousand Miles, between New France and New Mexico; with a 
Description of the Great Lakes, Cataracts, Rivers, Plants, and Animals. 
Also, the Manners, Customs, and Languages of the several Native 
Indians; and the Advantage of Commerce with those different Na- 
tions. With a Continuation, giving an Account of the Attempts of the 
S'ieur De la Salle upon the Mines of St. Barbe, etc. The Taking of 
■Quebec by the English; With the Advantages of a Shorter Cut to 
China and Japan. Both Parts Illustrated with Maps, and Figures, 
and Dedicated to His Majesty K. William By L. Hennepin, now Resi- 
dent in Holland. To which are added, Several New Discoveries in 
North-America, not publish'd in the French Edition. London, Printed 
for M. Bentley. J. Tonson, H. Bonwick, T. Goodwin, and S. Manship, 
1698. 

Henry de Tonty, 1680 

Tonty's memoir was first published in 1697, an English ver- 
sion appearing in 1698 bearing the following title: 

An account of Monsieur de la Salle's last Expedition and Discoveries 
in North America. Presented to the French King, and Published by 
the Chevalier Tonti, Governour of Fort St. Louis, in the Province of 
the Illinois. English from the Paris Original. Also, the Adventures 
of the Sieur de Montauban Captain of the French Buccaneers, in the 
year 1695. London: Printed by /. Tonson, at the Judge's Head. 
* * * 1698. 

^Tonty disowned to Iberville and to Father Marest the pub- 
lication of a book published in Paris in 1697, entitled 
^Demieres Deoouvertes dans FAmerique Sfeptentrionale, le M 

[ 187 ] 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

de la Salle, par M. le Chevalier Toiiti/ which has just been, 
reprinted under the title 'Relation de la Louisiane ou du Mis- 
sissippi par le Chevalier de Tonti.' " 

Tonty's memoir has been reprinted in the following works, 
in English translations": 

Vol. 2, New York Historical Collections, 1812. 
Falconer's On the Discovery of the Mississippi. London, 1844. 
French's Historical Collections of Louisiana. N. Y., 1846, i, pp. 52-80. 
Relation of Henry de Tonty concerning the exploration of La Salle, 

from 1678 to 1683. Caxton Club, Chicago, 1898. 
The Journeys of Rene Robert Cavelier Sieui* de la Salle as related by 

his faithful lieutenant Henri de Tonty, etc. N. Y., 1905. 2 vols. 

The memoir, in French, is given in full in MargTy, vol. i, 
pp. 573-614. 

Parianan Club Publication Xo. 3 (Milwaukee, 1896), by 
the present writer, is a connected account of Tonty's travels 
and experiences, bearing the title "Chevalier Henry de Tonty." 
This account, with additional material, maps, and illustrations, 
was reprinted with the following title; '^The Man with the 
Iron Hand" (Milwaukee- 1896\ 

Baron Lahontan, 1689 

Of Ithe numerous editions of Baron Lahontan/s voyagies, 
a complete series can be found in no library, nor collectively 
in the libraries of any one city. Of the numerous attempts 
to construct a bibliography of tliese interesting travels, the fol- 
lowing may be enumerated, although that compiled by Vic- 
tor H. Paltsits, of Lenox branch of the Xew York Public- 
Library, for tlie Thwaites reprint, is the only one approximatr 
ing accuracy: 

Harrisse, Henry. In Notes sur la Nouvelle France (Paris, 1872); nos. 
795-803. 
Incomplete. 

Sabin, Joseph. In Dictionary of Books relating to America, vol. x 
(1878), pp. 27-32. 
Some of the editions listed are not known to later bibliographers. 

[ 188 ] . 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

Winsor, Justin. In Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. 
iv (1884), pp. 257-262. 

A summary which the writer calls "a bibliographical and critical note." 
Pilling, James Constantine. In Bibliography of the Algonquian Lan- 
guages (1891), pp. 288-295. 

Seven title pages of French editions are reproduced in facsimile. 
Hoy, J. Bdmond. Notes sur les diverses Editions des Ouvrages de 
Lahontan, in Proceedings and Transactions of the Royal Society 
of Canada for 1894, pp. 179-192. 

Roy's monograph on "Le Baron de Lahontan" was issued as a separate, 
the bibliography constituting its final division. 

Gagnon, Phileas. In his Essai de Bibliographie Canadienne (Quebec, 

1895). 

Gagnon included only books comprised in his own library, and his col- 
lection of Lahontan seems to have Ijeen somewhat meagre. 

Dionne, Narcisse E. In Le Courrier du Livre (Quebec, 1899), vol. iii, 
pp. 313-326. 

Largely a compilation from preceding bibliographies, especially Filling's. 

Paltsits, Victor Hugo. Lahonton Bibliography, in the Thv/aites edi- 
tion of Lahontan's New Voyages to North America, an exact re- 
print of the English edition of 1703 (Chicago, 1905), vol. i, 
pp. li-xciii. 

Paltsits's admirable bibliography Iw.s been issued also as 
a separate of fprty- three pages. Collationis and full biblio- 
graphical data are given bv Mr. Paltsits, who lists editions as 
follows: French, 14; English, 6; Dutch, 1; Italian, 1; Ger- 
man, 1. Also abridgTiients and extracts as follows: English, 
1 abridgment and 1 extract; Dutch, '2 extracts; English, 1 
extract and 1 abridgment; German, 1 extract and 1 abridg- 
ment. 

The titles of the first English editions of Lahontan were as 
follows for the two volumes, respectively: 

New Voyages to North-America. Containing an Account of the Sev- 
eral Nations of that vast Continent; their Customs, Commerce, and 
Way of Navigation upon the Lakes and Rivers; the Several Attempts 
of the English and French to dispossess one another; with the Rea- 
sons of the Miscarriage of the former; and the various Adventures 
between the French and the Iroquese Confederates of England, from 
1683 to 1694. A Geographical Description of Canada, and a Natural 
History of the Country, with Remarks upon their Government, and 

[ 189 ] 



NEW 

VOYAGES 

T O 

North-America 

CONTAINING 

An Account of the feveral Nations of chat vaft Con- 
tinent ; their Cuiloms^ Commerce, and Way cf 
NavigarioAi upon the Lakes and Rivers ; the leve- 
ral Attempts of the EngUfh and French to difpoffefs 
one another 5 with the Reafons of the Mifcarrisge 
of the former; and the various Adventures be- 
tween the French, and the Irocjuefc Confederates of 
England, from 1685 to 3694. 

A Geographical Defcription of Canada, and a Natu- 
ral HiPfory of the Country, with R^emarks upon 
their Government_, and the Intereft of the F.77glij}i 
and French in their Commerce, 

Alfoa Dialogue between the Author and a General of the 
Savages, giving a full View of the Religion and firange 
Opinions of thofe People : With an Account of the Au- 
thors Retreat to Portugal and DenmarJ^^ and his Remarks 
on thofe Courts. 

To which is adJed, 

A Didlionary of the Algctikjne Language, which is generally 
Ipoke in Nor (,h' America. 



Illuftraced with Twenty Three Mapps and Cutts. 
Written in French 

By the Baron Lahontan, Lord Lievtenant 
of the French Colony at Plaeentia in Islew- 
foundland^ now in England, 

Done into EngliOo. 



In Two VOLUMES. 

A great part of which never Printed in the Original. 



LOVDOni Printed for H. Btnmcke m Sc. PauVs Ghurch-yaU ; 
^ T. Goodrvijit M. Wotton^ B. Tooke, in Fleet (inet ; and S. Manjhjp 
in Carnhil^ 1703- 



Facsimile of title-page to Vol. I of Lahontan's Voyages, ed. of 
1703. By courtesy of A. C. McClurg & Co., Chicago. 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

the Interest of the English and French in their Commerce. Also a 
Dialogue between the Author and a General of the Savages, giving a 
full View of the Religion and strange Opinions of those People: With 
an Account of the Authors Retreat to Portugal and Denmark and his 
Remarks on those Courts. To which is added, A Dictionary of the 
Algontine Language, which is generally spoke in North-America. Il- 
lustrated with Twenty Three Mapps and Cutts. Written in French 
by the Baron Lahontan, Lord Lieutenant of the French Colony at PlOr 
centia in Neio-foundland, now in England. Done into English. In 
Two Volumes. A great part of which never Printed in the Original. 
London: Printed for H. BonioicJce in St. PauVs Church-yard; 
T. Goodivin. M. Wotton, B. Tooke, in Fleetstreet; and 8. Manship in 
Cornhil, 1703. 

New Voyages to North-America. Giving a full Account of the Cus- 
toms, Commerce, Religion, and strange Opinions of the Savages of that 
Country. With Political Remarks upon the Courts of Portugal and 
Denmark, and the Present State of the Commerce of those Countries. 
Never Printed before. Written By the Baron Lahontan, Lord Lieu- 
tenant of the French Colony at Placentia in Neiofoundland: Now in 
England. Vol. ii. London. Printed for H. Bonwicke in St. PauVs 
Church-yard; T. Goodwin, M. Wotton, B. Tooke in Fleetstreet; and 
S. Manship in Cornhil, 1703. 

Baron Lahontan notes that: 

To the Translation of my first Volume, I have added an exact Map 
of Newfound-Land, which was not in the Original. I have likewise 
corrected almost all the Cuts of the Holland Impression, for the Dutch 
Gravers had murder'd 'em, by not understanding their Explications, 
which were all in French. They have grav'd Women for Men, and 
Men for Women; naked Persons for those that are cloath'd an § Con- 
tra. 

In his Indian Bibliography, Field notes : 

The Baron LaHontan went to Canada in 1683, when only sixteen 
years old, and remained in that country nearly twenty years. He was 
required by his patron to write to him a detailed statement of the 
affairs of the colony in his letters, as a recognition of the yearly as- 
sistance that he received from him. In this correspondence he did 
not flatter the priests, and imputed the evils which the colony suf- 
fered from the war with the Iroquois to their counsels. Becoming 
aware that steps were being taken by the governor of Newfoundland 
to send him a prisoner to France he fled to Portugal, and thence to 
England. He says in his Preface, that had the King of France re- 

[191] 



Wisconsin Historical Society 

stored him to his offices, he would have given his book to the flames. 
But the rich and powerful ministers Pontchartrain were inexorable, 
and in consequence the book was printed. LaHontan was in England 
while these volumes were printing, and in consequence of his super- 
vision they are more correct than the French edition. 

Alexander Henry, 1760 

The Travels and Adventures of Alexander Henry are fully 
as readable as those of Captain Ciar\^er, Father Hennepin, or 
Baron Lahontan. Unlike the accounts ascribed to the author- 
ship of these three travellers, Henr)^'s accuracy has never been 
questioned. Henry's travels extended from 1760' till 1776, 
but were not recorded in print until 1809, when they were 
brought out in 'New York with the following title: 

Travels and Adventures in Canada and the Indian Territories, be- 
tween the years 1760 and 1776. In Two Parts. By Alexander Henry, 
Esq. New York: Printed and published by I. Riley. 1809. 
P. 330 + 1 unnumbered page of errata. 

The dedication, addressed to Sir Joseph Banks, Baronet, is 
dated Montreal, October 20, 1809. In his preface Henry 
states that: 

A premature attempt to share in the fur-trade of Canada, directly 
on the conquest of the country, led the author into situations of some 
danger and singularity. These transactions occupied a period of six- 
teen years. The details [were] from time to time committed to 
paper. 

In 1901, Dr. James Biain, of Toronto Public Library, pub- 
lished Henr)^'s travels in a reprint edition of 250 copies, with 
aximirable notes and bibliographical matter. 

Jonathan Carver, 1766 

The travels of Jonathan Carver ^vere published for the first 
time twelve years after his journey of 5,000 miles. He spent 
three years in his wanderings tlirough Wisconsin and into 
Minnesota. His book had a circulation that was phenomenal 
for that day, and advertised the Western country among 

[192] 



Narratives of Early Travellers 

Einglisli- speaking people. It was in fact, the most popular 
book of its day. Schiller read it in a German version, and was 
inspired by it to write bis poem, "^N^adewessie Cliief's Dbath 
Song." This poem has been translated into English by Sir 
John Herschel, Sir Edward Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, and Edgar 
A. Bowring. 

Editions of Carver's travels have appeared from presses in 
Dublin, Edinburgh, London, Philadelphia, Portsmouth, New 
York, Hamburg, Bteton, Leyden, and iWalpole, N. BL 

The Harper edition of the book is called Co/Tver's Travels in 
Wisconsin. 

Lists of the Carver editions have been printed in the follow- 
ing periodicals and books: 

(Parkman Club Publications, No. 5.) 
Captain Jonathan Carver, by John Groadby Gregory. Milwaukee, 1896. 

(Parkman Club Publications, No. 5) 

Catalogue of Carter-Brown library, part iii. 

Bibliography of the Algonquian languages, by J. C. Pilling. Wash- 
ington, 1891. 

Mr. Gregory's excellent paper on Carver, with critical com- 
ment, can be commended as the best narrative account of thia 
traveller. 



[193] 



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ST^ LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 





016 091 209 1 



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